The James River National Wildlife Refuge, located on the banks of the James River in Prince George County, is seeking public input to guide in the development of a Comprehensive Conservation Plan for the refuge.

Meghan Carfioli, Natural Resource Planner with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the agency that manages the land, said the CCP is a 15 year strategic plan to establish a vision for the refuge and set a solid plan with goals and benchmarks for refuge staff.

“To manage a refuge, one of the things we need is an overarching plan,” Carfioli said during a public meeting held in Prince George County, Wednesday.

The evening meeting was the second of the day, following an afternoon session. Fish and Wildlife staff also met with county staff to seek input on the plan.

“This CCP development is an opportunity for you and others, many, many others, to participate in contributing to figuring out what’s important about the refuge, contributing ideas about what you’d like to see on the refuge and identify potential issues about refuge management,” Carfioli said.

The 4,300 acres of land in Prince George was set aside in 1991 to protect nesting, roosting and foraging habitat